


Frozen Lotus

by Huffle_Punk



Category: League of Legends, frozen lotus
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-03 14:11:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17285558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Huffle_Punk/pseuds/Huffle_Punk
Summary: Some of the most ancient and dangerous relics, belonging to Noxus and Freljord, appear in Piltover. Caitlyn and Vi can't capture the robbers responsible for stealing them, so they contact these nations to help them hunt them down. The representatives of both city-states are not very happy with the task. Main KataxAshe. (Sorry, I suck at summaries)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: the characters are not mine, they are League of Legends champions. I borrowed them so I can try to correct the horrible lack of LGBT + couples that currently exists in the official Lore.

The alleys surrounding the large warehouses in the vicinity of the Sun Gates were deserted at that late hour. The Sheriff of Piltover was scanning the area through the scope of her Hextech rifle. She was expecting the appearance of a certain pink-haired woman who was the nightmare of every villain in the city and an administrative problem for Caitlyn..., but there were no signs of Vi.

That same morning, while the twentieth damage report of that week was being filled, Vi entered the Sheriff's office, with a wide grin.

"We have a lead, cupcake"

Caitlyn didn't look up from her report, the damages the city would have to pay for Vi's last arrest were worrisome.

"You'll have to be more specific Vi"

The other girl laughed softly and approached the brunette's desk.

"You remember that band of Shuriman antiquities dealers that we have been following for a few months now...?"

At this information Caitlyn raised her head, looking at Vi directly in the eyes.

"I got the information that one of the negotiators of the band was trying to contact a seller of ancient treasures in the corridors of Commercia"

"Which one of them?" Caitlyn asked, reminded of the big and small shops that filled the commercial area of Piltover.

"One of dubious actions in past transactions" the girl replied, flexing her Hextech gauntlets.

"How much will this information cost to the city?" Caitlyn asked after a long, weary sigh.

"Don't worry, Cupcake, my methods are extremely sweet with people who are willing to cooperate with the law"

"He… cooperate?... Without property or bones damage?" This time, the Sheriff was really surprised.

"Your lack of faith hurts, honey" Vi said, pretending to be hurt, and continued her story. "It turns out that I have forged a certain reputation due to my past interrogations methods..."

Vi looked around Caitlyn's office, ignoring the girl's snort.

"Anyway..." she continued, "it turns out that the guy offered him some trinkets from foreign nations, although he didn't specify what they were. They agreed to a meeting in the warehouses next to pier 12, tonight "

Caitlyn smiled at the pink haired girl who was looking at her with amusement mixed with deep affection. She knew what Vi was thinking, they knew each other too well not to know. That night they would catch the thieves who had been scaping from them for the last months, and they could get all those dangerous objects out of Valoran's black market.

Caitlyn put the rifle back in its position, it had been over an hour and there were no signs of the suspects. She didn't doubt of the information Vi had obtained, but their delay in the agreed meeting time was very fishy.

When she was about to call her companion through the intercom that Professor Heimerdinger had designed for them, she heard a buzzing in her ear, meaning that it was the pink-haired girl who was trying to communicate with her.

"Are you there, cupcake?"

"Yes, Vi. What do you have?"

"The seller just got out of a black car two streets from here, escorted by two burly guys"

"Follow them but do not intervene. I want to catch them red handed"

"At your orders, cupcake""

Caitlyn smiled at the nicknames that Vi gave her, she would never admit it but she liked them a lot.

She changed her position to have a direct view of the warehouse door where the transaction of the smuggled items would take place.

After a few minutes she could see the salesman approaching with two muscular guys on both sides. Without too many precautions, they entered the place.

The little hextech contraption in the sheriff's ear rang again.

"I'm in position"

"Let's go in," Caitlyn replied.

From that moment, things happened quickly. The men, alerted by Vi's violent entrance, fled in terror like rats. One of them threw some kind of a smoke bomb that allowed them to sneak away more easily. Not without first severely injuring the seller who had passed the information to Vi.

Caitlyn gave the order to Vi to follow them, she would stay to take care of her witness until medical help arrived.

After about twenty minutes, Vi returned with a scowl.

"I'm sorry hunny. They disappeared. It is as if the earth had swallowed them "

"Don't worry Vi, next time we'll stop them. Now we have other things to worry about" the brunette said pointing to a pile of wooden boxes in a corner of the warehouse.

"What do you mean..."

The astonishment didn't let Vi finish her sentence. In the corner, the reinforcement officers the sheriff had called were extracting several relics from the crates.

Large black objects that gave off a crimson aura shone in the darkness. Beside it, a bluish glow radiated from objects that were clearly made of true ice.

"I think Nunu is in Piltover until tomorrow as a Freljord messenger, I'll go and look for him," Vi said.

The sheriff nodded, "I'll contact Leblanc."

* * *

Not even two days had passed when, again in her office, Caitlyn was interrupted by Vi, who was watching her amused.

The girl smiled back.

"What's going on?"

"The representatives of Freljord and Noxus are here"

"And that's something to smile about because...?"

"Oh, you'll see"

Caitlyn accompanied Vi to the conference room and understood what the other woman was saying.

"Katarina" the sheriff greeted. The redhead was looking absent-mindedly out the window, although her posture denoted a state of expectant alertness. The Sinister Blade turned and nodded in greeting.

At the other end of the room, in her cold regal posture, the leader of the Avarosan, looked at her intently.

"Ashe" Caitlyn greeted her. But she only received a half smile from the archer.

"Enough with the greetings, why am I here?" Katarina asked from her side of the room.

Caitlyn sat at the end of the table and ordered the documents she had brought with her, ignoring the haughtiness of the assasin.

"You see, that attitude will only extend this meeting even more" Vi told the redhead softly as they sat at the table located in the middle of the room. Katarina just huffed.

"I understand that you have come on behalf of your nations since you were the ones in shorter distance from Piltover," the sheriff began.

"The Institute of War has been kind enough to let you out to play with us" Vi said with a smile full of sarcasm.

"Anyway" Caitlyn continued, "what brings you here is this..."

She extracted from an envelope and passed to them the images of the recovered relics.

"According to our investigation, these are just some of the objects this gang of smugglers have in their possession, we don't know how many more they have or how they managed to get them"

_And if yourn nations weren't so distrustful and shared the information it would help us a lot,_  the girl thought but decided not to voice her those claims.

"We know it's a big band, with a lot of members scattered around all of Valoran's most important city-states, they're sneaky and a huge headache for law enforcements" Vi added.

"But we have a lead, we will get them" Caitlyn said confidently.

"What leads have you gathered so far?" it was Ashe who asked.

"We know they move in the lower rings of Zaun, there's a guy, Ezekiel, who handles them... at least in this area," Vi answered.

"And what have you done besides playing hide and seek with this Ezekiel?" Katarina questioned, looking bored.

"Ezekiel is in custody, in one of our cells," Caitlyn responded quickly, with a hard look directed at the assasin. "We expected that the emissary that Leblanc sent would be prone to unconventional... er, interrogations techniques "

"It's not like I can't do it myself" Vi said, "But cupcake here prefers me not to dirty my little hands"

"Well, at least now you're making some sense" Katarina said, getting up from her chair, "show me where the cells are and I will do my part"

"Always so eager to see blood" Ashe mocked, getting up too.

"When it's from my enemies, of course" the redhead replied over her shoulder, almost at the exit of the room.

"Well, that's something we share," the archer said coldly, "I'll go with you"

"I don't need your help"

"I didn't imply that you need it, but if this guy has infiltrated the tribes of Freljord, I want to know"

"This wretch has also infiltrated Noxus, and you will not have access to know how he did it"

Katarina was now facing Ashe, blocking her way.

Ashe looked up a few inches and her gaze fell on the deep green eyes of the other woman.

"Move"

"Ok, ok ... time out" Vi said smiling, she couldn't hide the fact that she was having fun with the situation.

"The Institute of War authorized this shared mission with various conditions" said Caitlyn, approaching them.

"First, everything that you know about the other nations involved in this investigation, must be kept under strict secrecy; second, no quarrels or fights between you two are allowed, much less causing physical harm," the sheriff emphasized the last two words "Third, Vi and I will be responsible for these conditions to be honoured. A breach of any of the conditions means a permanent ban of your nations from the Institute and you will never be able to step on the Rift again."

Vi grinned at both women who were looking at them with a frown. "I don't really like the idea of being your babysitter either"

Katarina snorted and with a "Alright", left the room.

Ashe said nothing, just nodded in Caitlyn's direction and followed the redhead, determined to keep her in sight as much as possible.

"So… This will be fun," Vi said, half sarcasticly, half seriously.

"You have a strange idea of what fun is" Caitlyn replied, gathering her documents and preparing to take her guests to Ezekiel's cell.

* * *

Ashe walked alongside Katarina, both behind Caitlyn and Vi. They were on their way to Ezekiel's cell.

The redhead seemed distracted watching the curious architecture of Piltover, which extended to places like the cells blocks.

The walls had geometrical designs and an efficient appearance. Hextech technology was used from the control of the doors of the cells to the security system of the entire building.

Ashe could feel Katarina's anticipation for the violence that was about to unfold. She recognize that wild energy it but it didn't bother her.

The frost archer was the warmother of her tribe but she was never prone to violence. If she could avoid it, she would. She was never going to flee from a confrontation, but she believed that the shedding of blood could be avoided.

Even so, Ashe could feel as if every fiber of the Noxian woman was filled with an energy that could turn to violence with extreme ease.

She looked at the redhead, that energy didn't bother her as it usually did, it just fascinated her.

"Why are you looking at me?" Katarina said, noticing her gaze as they reached the indicated cell.

"Nothing, you seem... curious, just that," Ashe said holding her gaze.

Katarina said nothing, only stared at her for a few seconds and then turned to face the dark cell.

In the middle of it, sitting against the far wall and plunged into the shadows, a figure lay motionless. Katarina couldn't tell the size of the man because of his position, but it didn't matter.

She took off her leather jacket and tossed it to Ashe without warning. The archer grabbed her in mid air, without even blinking.

_Good reflexes_ , Katarina thought, satisfied by the frown she had been able to get from the woman. She had a weakness for disturbing the peace of a certain Frejordian royalty.

The redhead stepped forward and opened the cell door. The figure in the shadows didn't move but there was a dry laugh that came from it.

"I can smell your fear" Katarina said with a lopsided smile.

* * *

"Violence solves everything," quipped Katarina as she left the cell.

Ezekiel hadn't lasted long before giving in the interrogation to the assassin.

"I like your technique," Vi told her, giving the red-head a pat in the back.

Ashe and Caitlyn rolled their eyes.

"Let's go to my office, we have a lot to plan," said the sheriff, guiding them in the direction of a corridor that left the Piltover prison.

"First I wanna wash off the blood of that bastard from my hands" the assassin said as she left the group. She had taken a few steps when she turned around towards Ashe.

"Do you want to accompany me too or will you finally stop following me?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Why? you need help?" the frost archer wasn't going to let the banter go.

Katarina laughed almost inaudibly and left.

Ashe simply continued on her way to the sheriff's office.

Vi looked at Caitlyn out of the corner of her eye, trying to hide a smile.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> …and they were roomates! and there was only one bed! YES GIMME ALL THE TROPES FOR MY BABIES!

The women were in Caitlyn's office, they were silent, analyzing the information that Katarina had obtained from Ezekiel.

"We don't have many options," said the sheriff thoughtfully, "We'll have to infiltrate in their ranks and I don't trust anyone but the four of us to follow this case closely."

"You're right, our nation's security have been violated and I wouldn't want that information to be in the public domain" Ashe replied sternly.

"If it's true that the band is financed by clandestine fights, you won't be able to do much with your rifle" the redhead scoffed.

"Shots?... How about a punch in the face?" Vi suggested enthusiastically.

"I'm afraid you're right this time, although my duty as a sheriff is to supervise the actions of all my subordinates, so I'll go too"

"Supervise?" Vi repeated under her breath.

"I made the arrangements for your stay in the city," Caitlyn continued, addressing the representatives of Noxus and Freljord. "Tonight we will meet at the doors of the Horological Institute, Heimer will provide us with the necessary gadgets to complete this mission and then we will move to Zaun. The fight that the Ezekiel band organizes for tonight will not be easy to find"

And with that said, she ended the meeting.

Vi turned to her guests and with an exaggerated smile and a broad and humorous gesture invited them to leave the office.

"Is she always this bossy?" Katarina asked. She didn't like being kicked out of a place this way. Even Swain didn't dare to do something like this.

"Yes" Vi replied laconically but without erasing her smiling face.

The assassin looked at her curiously, Vi seemed to enjoy being bossed around by the brunette.

"Some people need a strong hand to lead them to behave decently" Ashe said distractedly, knowing what Vi meant, and catching the noxian's disbelief, added "And those who believe that is not their case, it's because they still have not yet realized they need it"

"And with that accurate comment..." Vi said, enjoying the interactions between both women, "let me guide you to your hotel"

The girl, with her huge gauntlets, buzzing full of energy, led them out of the building, stepping in the streets of a bustling Piltover.

* * *

"You have to be kidding me", Katarina's voice was the first to break the silence.

The three women were standing at the entrance of the room that Caitlyn had booked for them.

 _And to think that she always accuses me of having a dirty mind_ , thought Vi to herself,  _Cupcake has surpass me greatly_.

"I'll go talk to the administration," Ashe said, heading for the nearest elevator.

"You won't have much luck" Vi told her, interrupting her steps, "we are in carnival season on Sideral Avenue, people are coming from all over Runaterra, there are no rooms available anywhere"

Katarina huffed, Ashe was simply speechless.

"The rest of your luggage will be brought here," the girl continued, looking at the bags they both had on their shoulders.

"I have everything I need with me" Katarina said entering the room.

"Me too. Thank you"

Vi saw how both entered the room and deposited their few pieces of luggage in the only bed in the room. Besides that there was only a small table in a corner, with two chairs, an armchair that looked quite comfortable (in which Katarina had settled immediately), a couple of bedside tables, and nothing else.

 _I didn't think Cait had such spartan tastes,_  Vi thought.

"Well..., since no one is paying attention to me anymore, I'll be leaving"

Nobody answered her.

"I guess you can find the Horological Institute on your own... or do you prefer that I help you get there?"

Another huff from Katarina.

"We will be there" Ashe said.

"Good..., well... good night"

The sound of the room's door closing was almost deafening in the silence that had spread throughout the room.

Katarina, with her body almost scattered in the only comfortable armchair in the room, observed the frost archer. She had left her bow (not the one she normally used in the Rift but one of finely carved wood) on one side of the room and was taking off her cloak. The woman's white hair fell on her back as if it were a very thin snow curtain.

The Noxian assassin remembered the words of her brother Talon, before she began her trip to Piltover.

_"They would probably send the queen in representation of the tribes of Freljord"_

_"Mmhm," Katarina hummed, tucking some clothes into her leather bag reluctantly._

_"I can go in your place, if you don't want to do it"_

_"Leblanc assigned me to this mission personally"_

_"I can accompany you"_

_Katarina stopped her task and looked at the boy curiously._

_"What? I wouldn't mind working with the queen on a mission"_

_"I will not work with her, I'm working for Noxus" the woman said dryly. "Wait… you like her. If I remember correctly, you always look like a lapdog every time you are in the same team, but I thought that it was limited to the Rift"_

_"You have to be half blind and half dead if you don't think Ashe is beautiful" Talon answered as if it was a known fact. "That woman is deop dead gorgeous, if they leave_ _me_ _alone one night with her I..."_

_"You don't need to give me details" Katarina cut him with a grimace of disgust that she couldn't hide._

_She finished packing and left her room without saying any more words and without saying goodbye._

As she remembered her brother's words, Katarina's gaze slid down Ashe's curves while the archer, with her back to the redhead, was arranging her armor next to her bag.

 _I'm definitely not blind nor dead,_  she thought.

"I'll take a bath," Ashe announced, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"You don't have to tell me everything you plan to do" Katarina told her, sounding bored.

"I only informed you... in case you wanted to come with me"

Katarina opened her eyes wide before those words and looking for Ashe's gaze, but the archer had disappeared through a small door that apparently led to the bathroom.

 _What the hell was that!_  Ashe thought looking at her blushing face in the mirror that hung from one of the walls of the bathroom.

She didn't know what force had prompted her to say that to Katarina, but she had. And she was completely sure that Katarina had heard it.

If she was honest with herself, she always thought the Noxian assassin was very attractive. Her attitude, which to most people caused rejection, only appealed to her even more. And her leather clothes, which fitted her curves extremely well, did nothing but help her cause.

Ashe stifled a grunt and ran her hands over her face in a gesture of fatigue and helplessness. She shouldn't think of the Noxian like that. She didn't even see Tryndamere like that. As much as the elders of her tribe hoped that among them would emerge a powerful offspring who would command all of Freljord, the archer couldn't think of her and the barbarian in... that way.

She was oathbound to Tryndamere for political reasons, for the protection of her people and the peace she was trying to build in the territory. The oath they proclaimed among themselves did not contemplate any kind of reproduction activity. Something that the barbarian knew very well since he roamed around the Freljord producing what, according to him, would be a powerful race of soldiers.

Ashe let the water sweep away her worries as it ran down her body. She would finish the mission and return to the Institute of War, and would completely forget about these thoughts.

Outside, Katarina still hadn't moved from her place. She was still in the armchair she already claimed for herself, while listening to the water running in the bathroom next to the room. Her mind swirling with lustful thoughts.

She was sure that the archer had uttered the words she had heard, _right?_  It wasn't just her imagination,  _right!?_

The bathroom door opened again and a very naked Freljord queen, covered only by a white towel, emerged from its vaporous depths. If Katarina had started to get rid of her naughty thoughts, she didn't have any chance this time and she fell back into the abyss of lust. The tips of her fingers tickled with the need to touch her, to caress that pale and inviting skin.

Ashe, lost in her own thoughts, didn't realize what she was doing until a door slamming in its hinges informed her that the assassin had left the room.

* * *

Near the appointed time, Ashe was getting her belongings ready to meet with Caitlyn and Vi. Katarina, who hadn't returned since she had left the bathroom, made her appearance with a bang very much like when she left. Ashe saw her as she went straight to her bag, retrieve some knives she carried inside, put them inside her jacket and turned to her.

"Are you ready?" she asked, as if the awkwardness from before meant nothing to her.

Ashe just nodded and together they left the hotel. They walked to their destination in complete silence.

* * *

At the gates of the Horological Institute, Piltover's finest awaited impatiently for the arrival of Ashe and Katarina.

"Do you think they killed each other?" Caitlyn asked, rhythmically tapic her heel on the cobbled street.

"You put them in the same room, honey, it's that or... well, they may have found another way to pass the time"

"You keep insisting with that"

"Of course, the chemistry is undeniable, they are just too obtuse to see it"

"Yes, that thing about being too obtuse to see things that are right in front of them is a very popular disease around here"

"W... what do you mean?"

"Here we are" Ashe's voice interrupted the talk of the two women.

"And why are we here?" Katarina continued pointing to the double metal doors of the Institute "I don't need rare gadgets to do my job"

"Follow me" said Caitlyn simply.

The interior of the Institute was dark. Very few engineers were still working at that hour but those who were didn't seem to pay too much attention to them. The four women walked between the winding corridors while sounds of electric crackle and humming runes and crystals being activated accompanied them. On one side, a hammer very similar to Jayce's seemed to be in full repair. On the other side, on a pedestal, a giant wheel with a seat and pedals in the middle seemed to be ready to go out and tour the city. They went down some narrow stairs arriving to what must have been Heimerdinger's personal workshop.

"Hey, Professor... here we are!" Vi screamed, causing the walls of the big room to echo back.

"Stand back! I'm about to do... science!" the little yordle's voice was heard from behind a large desk, full of ratchets and trash.

"Stop playing Heimerdinger, we came for the communicators we had requested" Caitlyn said, trying to let the inventor hear her over all the noise made by a small little turret that had escaped from behind the desk.

"You're not designed for this," Heimerdinger said as he turned the turret off "Yes yes, Sheriff, here they are"

Caitlyn took from the inventor's hands and distributed to Ashe and Katarina two tiny communicators that were placed inside the ear and left no trace of their existence.

"Come on, try them" the yordle said enthusiastically.

Vi pressed her index finger against her ear, as the professor had taught her and, walking to the far corner of the room, whispered.

"Ready for action?"

The voice of the pink haired girl was heard clearly by the other three women in the room, as if they had her inside their heads.

"It works," Ashe said with a slight nod, marveling at the technology of the city of progress.

"I agree! And it is wonderfully efficient!" exclaimed the inventor.

"We'll also take four face-changers" Caitlyn told him.

"A wise decision," he murmured and dived into a pile of junk until he found a box. Heimerdinger opened it and inside it were four charms with a lilac gemstone embedded inside.

After taking the stones, the four women left the workshops in the direction of Zaun. Caitlyn had explained to them that the stones that hung in gleaming golden chains that Heimerdinger had given them were crystals of arcane magic. The contraption would allow them to change their physical appearances when trying to enter the site where the clandestine fight of that night would take place. They were all well known throughout Valoran, and they needed to hide their identities if they wanted to do their job correctly.

Before taking the hex-hydraulic conveyor that would leave them in the lower neighborhoods of Zaun, Caitlyn reviewed the plan with her companions.

"Katarina will pass for a new contender in the fight tonight," the redhead nodded, "Vi and I will collect information from the bettors, Ashe... you will be our eyes from above", then, without another word she entered the elevator that would take them to the place indicated by Ezekiel.

Ashe was behind Katarina before she got on the transport and she whispered in the read-head ear:

"Don't worry, I'll watch your back"

A chill ran down the assassin's back and and drowned her words before they could get out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reviews keep the writer inspired xP


	3. Chapter 3

The hex-hydraulic conveyor began its descent into the depths of Piltover. They went to the Entresol level, where agents, traffickers and artists mixed in commercial stalls and workshops nestled in the cliffs. They passed through the Bridgewaltz market, the place was crowded.

"Here you can find the best in music, food and artisanal chemtech creations... among other things. Every night!" said Vi, acting as tourist guide for her companions.

The four women, already with their changed appearance, looked around wondering with the civilization hidden within the cloud of smog and chemicals that ascended from the Sump level.

When they reached the middle level of Zaun, Vi checked that their looks were convincing.

Katarina's hair was no longer bright red, but a dull black, her scar had moved and was now over her right lip. The only thing that remained the same were her piercing green eyes.  
Caitlyn's hair was now short and blue, her eyes of an intense orange.  
Ashe had changed a lot, her white hair was now a common blonde, but her complexion and eyes were deep brown. The girl threw a ragged cloak over her shoulders, completing the look.  
Vi had become a big boy with bright green eyes. Her hair remained pink although a darker shade.

After a careful scrutiny, Vi nodded in agreement. Nobody would know who they were. With a sharp bow, she took Caitlyn's hand and placed it on her arm, guiding her to the place where the fight would supposed to take place.

They walked for a few minutes.

The little light that came down there was filtered by the vapors that came out of the corroded pipes and reflected through the stained glass windows of the industrial architecture. The women noticed that despite existing in a permanent twilight, Zaun progressed, its people were energetic and their culture was very rich. The chemical lights shone on bolted street lights and, through the creative use of colored glass, the bright orbs illuminated the nooks and crannies of the city.

"What is that?" Ashe asked, carefully observing the huge glass houses that seemed isolated from the environment, containing trees and plants.

"They are cultivars," Vi said "The wealthiest of Zaun build them as a symbol of their power, it's a source of clean air and the best way to escape the Gray, a byproduct of the proliferation of the chemical industry."

The three women observed the imposing structures. Caitlyn came to the conclusion that the injustice between social status extended throughout Runeterra.

It didn't take long for them to reach a large hangar that looked, for the most part, abandoned. Voices and cheers were heard from inside, followed by the rumble of voices. A large man, with several parts of his body replaced by hextech parts, waited at the entrance with a stone-cold face.

"You cann't go inside without the password," he growled.

"Frankly, dear, I do not care," said Vi pompously.

The man nodded and opened the door.

"I was about to doubt that the password Ezekiel gave us was correct" Caitlyn whispered once inside.

Ashe immediately separated from the group, looking for a high place away prying eyes from where to watch the crowd without being noticed. She spotted a emergency stairs and pointed to the group.

"I'll be there"

Katarina shrugged and pointed to where those who seemed to organize the event were.

"I'll sign up for the fight"

The other two nodded and proceeded to mingle among the people.

It had been more than an hour since their arrival when, through a megaphone, the host of the show announced the fight between Katarina, now called Katherine, and a man named Kez. The man climbed into the ring had showing his right arm and his left leg made of hextech material, powered by some kind of chemical that gave off a greenish vapor through every cavity.

"Kez! Kez! Kez!" the people sang, encouraging the big guy who raised his arms and inflamed the crowd.

"It has a slight twist in the mechanical shoulder, just before moving it" Ashe's voice came through the communicators "It will allow you to anticipate his blows"

"I don't need your help" Katarina said through her teeth as she approached the makeshift ring in the middle of the hangar. She lifted the chains that separated the fight area from the crowd and slid into the center. A powerful reflector illuminated the fighting area making the rest of the space sink in shadows. Even then, Katarina knew exactly where the archer was.

The fight started with a huge roar from Kez as he pounced on the assassin. Katarina, aware that she couldn't use her recognized abilities during the fight to its full potential, resorted to the training she had received in her years in the Noxian militia. With one leap to the side, she dodged the big man's body and hit him with her knee in the middle of his abdomen. Without air and with much surprise, Kez turned around looking for the girl. Katarina took the opportunity to hit him with a fist full in the nose. But it didn't hurt him. In the stillness that had followed the failed movement of the man, the crowd could hear a 'clanc' that indicated that the assassin had hit a metal surface.

"There are more hextech parts in me, little one, let me show you," Kez scoffed.

Katarina took a step backwards when, from his mechanical arm, a saw spun off, spinning rapidly, cutting off the air.

Kez began to throw lunges with his saw in the direction of the woman who was having problems to dodging it. She had already received several cuts in her arms and a quite deep one in the back.

"Stop playing" Caitlyn said via intercom.

"Use your shumpo, Katarina" Ashe told her from above "He has a blind spot just behind his metal shoulder"

Katarina smiled at Kez and, using the information Ashe had given her, started moving.

In a thousandth of a second, she noticed the twisting in the metal arm and used her ability to disappear from the front of Kez's saw and appear behind his right arm. She slid a small dagger from inside the sleeve of her jacket and with a skillful and quick movement cut a bunch of cables and hoses that had been left unprotected. The parts sizzled and began to lose a thick, green, fluorous oil.

"I can also play with sharp things," the woman told Kez while the man was slowly collapsing when its mechanical parts stopped working.

The crowd was silent for a few seconds and then burst into cheers before the winner.

With a huge smile, Vi tried to help Katarina out of the ring. Caitlyn looked at her with concern, the cuts looked deep and bled quite a lot.

"Let go!" the assassin told her "I can do it by myself!"

Vi let go of her as the fight organizers approached them.

"Wow, you really move fast, it's a pity that our boss is not here to see you. I'm sure he would have invited you a drink"

"I'm not interested in having a drink, just tell me when I can get another fight"

"That's right!" Vi said histrionically, playing the part, "Our girl has potential, and we will make a lot of money with her"

The man started talking to Vi (now Vincent, thanks to the face-changer), giving her directions for the next event, but Katarina had stopped paying attention to them. She looked a little more closely at one of the cuts that Kez had made in one of her arms. Along with the blood, a yellowish liquid was beginning to ooze from the wound. She felt a little dizzy and weak.

That bastard had imbibed the saw with some kind of chemical and the poison was working.

With concern she felt how her legs could no longer hold her and when she feared she would fall, she felt a strong arm around her waist that held her upright.

"I got you" Ashe whispered in her ear.

Katarina, hating to depend on the archer but aware of her incapability to stay on her feet, laid her weight on the body that held her. Ashe's arm gripped her tightly.

Caitlyn, noticing the situation, squeezed Vi's arm.

The silent communication between them had the desired effect. Vi ended the conversation with the organizer.

"Well, friend, I have to reward my fighter with a good drink" she said with strong pats on the man's shoulder, accentuating each word.

"Sure, sure" he laughed "I hope to see her in the next fight," he said and got lost in the crowd that was already making bets for the next fight.

People swarmed around the betting corridors here and there, no one paid attention to the four women who made their way to the exit in a quick but hidden way.

The effect of the poison began to diminish when the elevator that took them back to Piltover rose enough to capture cleaner air. Katarina's mind began to clear and her legs regained strength little by little. Even so, she remained with her weight resting on Ashe, who held her firmly.

When arriving at the city, the assassin already had recovered the dominion of her body and refused to go to a hospital.

"I'm fine," she growled at Caitlyn when, for the third time, the sheriff tried to convince her to see a healer.

The sheriff sighed deeply.  _Why does life have to put in my path people so obstinate and negligent with their own health?,_  she thought looking sideways at Vi, remembering similar situations.

"Well, if you insist on suffering alone, go back to the hotel and rest, tomorrow I'll wait for you two first thing in the morning to discuss what we have learned today about the thieves... and maybe we can plan what strategy we have to follow in the future"

And with this, she dismissed them all.

Katarina had already started to leave and was a few steps away when Ashe reached her.

"Thanks," she said, so imperceptibly that Ashe thought she had imagined it. But a quick look into the assassin's eyes confirmed she was actually thankul for the archer's help.

* * *

Caitlyn and Vi arrived at the building where the sheriff lived.

"You know you can stay with me tonight, right?" The brunette said trying to sound carefree.

"Nah, it's okay, I want to make some arrangements before tomorrow, I have a feeling we'll be gone for a while," Vi said, with a slight blush on her cheeks. She was acting cowardly and she knew it damn well.

Caitlyn watched her for a second and then nodded without saying a word.

But before entering the building, she turned around.

"It's a good thing that you act all responsible with your obligations as an Enforcer, but you don't have to prove anything to anyone. Vi, the city adores you…"

"..."

"I think that from time to time you should... let go a little, maybe?" the sheriff winked at her seductively and disappeared into the shadows of the building.

Vi was at least ten minutes trying to process everything Caitlyn had said to her.

 _That wink... that seductive voice... that accent... I'll have to do something soon or this woman will end up killing me,_  Vi thought as, whistling a melody, she walked away calmly.

* * *

"Stay still for two seconds, please," Ashe repeated to Katarina who could not stand still while the queen of the Freljord, sitting on the bed behind her, applied an ointment to her wounds.

"That thing smells horrible", even for Katarina herself, those words sounded childish.

Ashe gave a small giggle that bristled the hairs on the back of the assassin's neck. Ashe was close. Too close. She had knelt on the bed, behind her injured back and the redhead could feel her knees touching both sides of her hips.

"It's not supposed to smell good, but it will help you heal your wounds quickly," Ashe informed her.

"Where did you get it from?" the redhead asked, trying to think of something else to talk about and distract herself. The archer's fingers, sliding slowly on her sensitive skin, was affecting her reasoning.

"My mother taught me how to make it" she replied "I always carry a little with me"

"..."

"Done!" she said suddenly "The ointment is well distributed throughout the wound, luckily the cut on your back is not as deep as I thought, it should be almost healed in the morning"

Katarina didn't move.

"..."

"Are you alright?" the other woman asked, worried.

"Yes, just a little dizzy," Katarina said softly, as if the sound had been imprisoned in her vocal cords, refusing to leave.

It was late night and the hotel they were staying in was deep in silence. Katarina liked silence. Silence was her friend during the missions entrusted to her by Noxus and a loyal companion on her lonely nights. But this time, in that place, silence made her uncomfortable. The closeness of the freljordian queen was affecting her a lot but she tried her best not to show it.

"I'll help you lie down"

As if she knew the effect she was having on the assassin, Ashe let her breath caress the side of the other woman's face, causing an imperceptible chill. Katarina tightened the garment on her chest, which had been removed to allow the archer better access to the wound, and let Ashe help her to lie on the bed they would share that night.

The assassin was lying on her stomach (to let the ointment do its job) and she didn't want to move. She felt Ashe partially cover her with a blanket and lie down beside her. After a few seconds, the redhead felt Ashe pass her arm over the small of her back.

If Katarina had been really dizzy, this would have left her unconscious. She tried to relax but her body betrayed her, she felt the woman who was next to her with every fiber of her being, she felt her breathing, she even thought she felt every heartbeat of the archer. Katarina sighed deeply, thinking this would be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know about you, but I like the idea of Ashe, barely trying, frying all the circuits of the Sinister Dagger (high ranking officer and Noxus' favorite killer, who can eviscerate you before you notice it), and turn her into a babbling little puddle xP


	4. Chapter 4

The night had not been long at all, in fact, for Katarina it seemed really short. She wanted to continue sleeping. In those moments, with her eyes still closed, she could feel as if she was in a warm and comfortable cocoon that she didn't want to leave.

Slowly, when the fog of sleep was dissipating, the assassin realized that this warmth couldn't mean anything good. She opened her eyes slowly and checked her if her hunch was correct. She found herself face to face with the angelic image of the queen of the barbarian tribes of the frozen north.

In a bit of panic, Katarina tried to move away but the arms that surrounded her tightened the embrace, pulling her impossible close to the body in front of her. Ashe held her as if wanting to absorb her, to never let her go; although her quiet breathing indicated that she was still asleep.

The assassin swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. During the night, both had finished in that position and the archer wasn't the only one in a compromised position, Katarina herself had her arm around the waist of the other woman. Her hand settled quietly on a portion of soft skin, where the clothes Ashe wore to sleep had risen slightly during the night. Unable to avoid it, the redhead slid her fingers over that perfect skin. Maybe it wasn't as warm as most people, it felt just a few degrees below the usual body temperature but Katarina felt incredibly amazed by the sensation that it transmitted to the tips of her fingers.

"... so warm," Ashe said between dreams, and tried to bring her even more close. Instinctively, Katarina put up resistance, which made her wake up.

"Your highness," the assassin greeted her, in the most devoid of emotion voice that she could muster.

Ashe opened her eyes wide and quickly withdrew her arms. She turn to face up.

"I'm sorry... it's a habit" the girl said, looking at the ceiling.

"A... habit?"

"When you live in the frozen steppes of the Freljord, you have to spend the night near a heat source or you'll die frozen"

The implication of what Ashe had just told her went deep into the chest of the redhead who quickly got up from the bed. The girl didn't even notice that the injuries received the night before didn't hurt or bother her. Her mind was focused on something else. And that thing was Ashe, in the middle of a freezing night in Rakelstake, sharing a bed with a big, burly barbarian with long black hair. She imagined how the guy surrounded the Frost Archer with his strong arms and…

A burning sensation settled in her chest, so intense that she brought her hand to the place where it hurt, as if trying to placate a mortal wound. With her back to Ashe, the girl looked for her clothes, she felt suffocated in that room. Her mind tried to find a logical explanation for her discomfort but she couldn't find any. Ashe and Tryndamere were married, the whole League knew it and she would do well not to forget it.

"Children are the ones who suffer the most from the cold," she heard Ashe say while she also searched for her clothes. "So, when their parents are on a hunting or surveillance mission, I let the little ones stay with me, I usually have a nearly constant group of six or seven urchins piled up among the pelts I keep in my room," she told her with a genuine smile.

"Children?"

"Yes, I am the Mother of my people, and not just for war," the queen informed her. With a huge smile and a distant look, invoking happy memories, Ashe continued, "A few years ago, on the eve of a snowstorm, I sent warriors and archers to protect a small village on the western edge of the Freljord. As the warriors were leaving, I saw a little girl of about two or three years old who was waving them goodbye, her parents were among the archers on that mission and if they left, it meant that the girl would be left alone during the storm. I couldn't let that happen, the little one wouldn't survive the night. I tried to get one of her parents to stay, but my officers told me that the order was already given. So it occurred to me that this girl, and all the other little ones who were in similar situations, should stay with me in the main house on Rakelstake. Halfway through that night, when the storm roared with ferocity outside, I heard that same little girl entering my room and without a word, climbed onto my bed and huddled in my arms, falling asleep in seconds" Ashe laughed. "After a few minutes, the rest of the children followed her. Before I knew it, I had the royal chambers filled with sleeping children on the different pelts I had around the fireplace and under my own blankets. I couldn't tell them to leave, right?"

The image that had formed in Katarina's mind during the story was much better than the one she had conjured before, and a smile had been drawn on her face as she imagined Ashe constantly surrounded by a group of children who followed her around when the sovereign was in her lands.

"And Tryndamere allows it?" she asked with curiosity.

Before disappearing in the bathroom, Ashe replied.

"What business would Tryndamere have in my room?"

The girls didn't exchange a word after that, each deep into their own thoughts.

When they reached Caitlyn's office, they found Piltover's finest, debating over a huge map that occupied the entire sheriff's desk.

Seeing them arrive, Vi examined them from head to toe looking for signs of... something.

"You are alive… Good" she concluded, returning her analysis to the map.

"What are you looking at?" Katarina asked completely ignoring the strange comment and approaching the table.

"We are designing a strategy" Caitlyn told them. "The names of the towns where the next fights would take place were false, that was obvious, but they are not completely incorrect, after a short visit from Vi to our friend Ezekiel's cell, we obtained a way to decipher the code that the band use to communicate" while Caitlyn explained, Vi flexed her biceps in the direction of the other two. "The next fight is in Rokrund"

"That's in Noxian territory," Katarina said.

"It is. The best chance to recover all the stolen relics and get some answers is to capture as many members of the band as we can. We still don't know how they have access to the treasures of the different nation-states" declared the sheriff.

"That's why we have to make a little trip outside of Piltover to follow them and capture them, the best way to do it is to travel on foot, as they do, to go unnoticed, and use our false identities to participate in the upcoming fights," Vi said as she approached Katarina and Ashe. "Pack your belongings, girls, we leave in two hours"

The four women, wrapped in cloaks that covered them almost completely, left Piltover under the shelter of the midday sun, camouflaged among the multitudes that traded with the city of progress day after day. Nobody would notice a few more travelers on the busy roads.

The official version said that the representatives of Noxus and Freljord, along with Caitlyn and Vi, had returned to the War Institute in order to gather more information about the recovered relics.

Only a handful of people knew about their real mission and, with a bag full of gadgets manufactured by Heimerdinger, the women disappeared from Runeterra's radar.

Caitlyn led them along the shores of the Conqueror's Sea. Once they had left the surrounding lands of Piltover, they had decided not to travel on the official roads and set out on an alternative route that took them along the coast.

They were equipped with everything necessary to fight if needed, but nothing flashy that compromised the mission. Ashe had her carved wood recurve bow that was, while striking, not as flamboyant as the weapon she used in the Summoner's Rift. Caitlyn's powerful hextech rifle was replaced by a smaller and lighter one, the additions of magic crystals were made in a way that could hardly be distinguished from a common hunting rifle, lacking the power of the sheriff's usual weapon, but it still would do the work. Vi's huge gauntlets were replaced by Ziggs' new invention, smaller gloves that retracted into a pair of bracelets when they were not activated, making them go unnoticed. Katarina had no weapons, but the girls knew that countless daggers were hidden in her clothes.

They walked without stopping for much of the afternoon, sheltered from possible curious looks by their cloaks. When the sun had begun to hide behind the distant mountains in the east, the girls decided to establish a small camp. The beach wasn't a suitable place to spend the night since they would be very exposed, reason why Ashe looked for a little clear in the forest, where they would be more hidden and safe.

Vi was commissioned to assemble two tents that would keep them safe while Katarina had been entrusted with the task of looking for some dry firewood to light a fire.

Caiytlin and Ashe, being the marksmen, would be in charge of hunting something for dinner.

When the night had settled over their heads and the stars spread like a blanket of lights over them, the hunters returned, both with a their prey hanging from ropes.

"You are such good providers" Vi said, feigning a faint and exaggeratedly flapping of her eyelashes.

Both hunters looked at each other, amused by the occurrences of the pink haired woman. Katarina was sitting by the fire, her eyes lost in a fixed point. She was still immersed in her thoughts, unable to understand what she felt. And, to top it off, she would have to share the tent with Ashe. As much as she had assured Vi that she was used to sleeping outdoors, the girl was determined. They would take turns guarding the camp, but otherwise, they would have to be inside the tents. Not intending to contradict her, the assassin yielded. She knew how to pick her battles.

While they ate, the talk had remained friendly but concise. They agreed on the path to follow for the next morning, when they would arrive at Rokrund. Ashe looked to her side, at the redhead who hadn't say more than two words in a row throughout the day. She could no longer deny that she was attracted to Noxian beauty. She still hadn't been able to erase from her mind the feeling of having her in her arms, of sharing a bed, of that little caress that Katarina had done to her when her fingers brushed the skin of her waist.

"Who is taking the first turn to guard" said Caitlyn, beginning to put out the fire.

"I'll go first," Ashe told her, pulling her quiver closer to make sure her arrows were in good condition.

"Good. Katarina, you go after her" the sheriff told them "Then Vi. I'll take the last one"

"Thank you for asking our opinion about that" the assassin snarled, getting up and heading to her tent with a frown.

Caitlyn just raised an eyebrow and then mimicked her.

"If you see something strange, don't try anything on your own, let us know first," said Vi to Ashe, who was already putting her cloak on her shoulders.

"Yes, I know how surveillance works, Vi" she replied with a small smile.

The girl nodded and walked away muttering something of being surrounded by very stubborn ladies.

Katarina's watch was about to come to an end and before she could tell Vi, the pink-haired girl was already at her side.

"Go to rest, my fighter has to be in her best shape for tomorrow. You have asses to kick"

Katarina offered her a lopsided smile, she liked Vi and her ways, she was more direct than most people she knew. They fist bumped in a way greeting and the redhead went to her tent.

Inside, a very asleep Ashe barely stirred in her dreams as Kataring entered. Almost without thinking, the assassin took one of the blankets that the archer had at her feet and placed it gently on the sleeping figure. The temperature had dropped during the night.

She leaned in front of the girl and saw how the little moonlight that reached the interior of the tent, illuminated her white hair. Katarina's hands tingled at the need to caress those silky strands.

At that moment Ashe opened her eyes and a smile formed on her lips as she discovered Katarina watching her.

"You should sleep," she whispered.

"I'm fine, you sleep," Katarina replied in the same way.

"Come," Ashe said, lifting the blanket next to her so the other girl would come closer.

"I told you I'm fine, I do not need..."

Ashe shortened the distance and covered her with the blanket, almost touching her body, as she put her arm around her.

"Let me take care of you," she whispered again.

The girl's breath brushed against Katarina's lips, who closed her eyes. If Ashe kept trying to get closer, she wouldn't be able to resist much longer.

Luckily for her, Ashe was in charge of the situation. She took the redhead's face and caresed the outline of her jaw, making the girl open her eyes. When their eyes merged in a longed look, Ashe closed the distance and kissed her. Katarina felt Ashe's lips with every nerve ending in her body and she couldn't help but to return the kiss with the same abandon.

If she wanted to be honest with herself, Katarina never had a chance to oppose the other girl's actions. Her arms closed around Ashe's waist, causing the archer to cling to her body emitting a small moan, a mixture of surprise and pleasure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What would happen in the next chapter?  
> TBC  
> xP


	5. Chapter 5

In Ashe and Katarina's tent, things had heated up very quickly. A kiss led to a caress and then the girls' clothes no longer covered their bodies. The redhead was lying on Ashe while her hands marked a path of fire through the bare skin of the archer, who tried frantically to drown her moans. Katarina's kisses were desperate, needy. Ashe allowed her to take everything she wanted, the need for affection and human warmth of the assassin was reflected as a mirror in the actions of the queen of the Freljord.

The dawn lights began to appear on the horizon and the first rays of the sun dimly illuminated the clearing. Neither of them noticed the amber color of the rising sun. Katarina longed to seize every second she could, capture every breath of the woman beneath her, every moan drowned by her own lips.

Ashe's breathing stirred more and more as the girl tried to bring the redhead closer.

"Kat ... please" she pleaded in a desperate whisper.

Katarina smiled sideways and prepared to satisfy her queen. The noxian wasted no time in detaching herself from the archer's lips and leaving a warm wet trail while descending her neck. Sje stopped for a moment on her breasts leaving ethereal kisses that were not enough for Ashe who closed her hands on the nape of the redhead, bringing her even more closer. But Katarina was not one to submit to anyone's will and replaced her mouth with curious and playful fingers.

"Katarina..."

"Submit to my will, your highness, you will not regret it" Katarina replied to her lover's prayer.

While her hands continued to caress, etching her fingerprints on Ashe's skin, her mouth went on its own way. The kisses she left were damp and filled with promises of the destination they would eentuallt reach. She stopped for a moment over the belly of the archer, drawing flourishes with her breath an tongue. Ashe's hips accompanied the path of Katarina's tongue with erratic spasmodic movements. When the redhead finally arrived at her destination, Ashe was more than ready for her. Katarina tried to prolong the agony further by leaving small, tender kisses on the inside of her thighs until Ashe graned in protest.

Outside, a very sleepy Caitlyn came out of the tent and took a deep breath of the clean morning air. She stretched her arms to the sky trying to relax her back when a choked groan stopped her movements halfway.

She turned slowly in the direction of the sound to only find the tent of her companions.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Another moan.

Her face turned in a deep red shade as she realized what was happening inside. Without thinking too much, she walked away as fast as she could in search of Vi, trying to erase the images that had formed in her mind.

"I'm so close" babbled the blonde inside the tent, very close to her limit.

Katarina stopped, wanting to see her face the moment the woman exploded with pleasure in her hands.

She undid the path she had drawn moments before and melted into a deep kiss as Ashe was waiting for her with her arms wide open, determined to keep her close to her skin-

Katarina nestled herself between the other woman's legs and began to rock her hips against Ashe's at a frenzied pace, she couldn't stand this self-induced torture any longer. She wanted to possess her with all of her being and at the same time lose herself in her lover's embrace to never be found again. Their sexes met with an erratic and desperate cadence. Their breaths melted into the same air that united them. Ashe brought her hands to Katarina's backside to increase the friction between them. The redhead emitted a guttural, almost animal moan and buried her face in the neck of the archer to silence the other sounds that struggled to leave her throat. The assassin wanted to scream and moan with pleasure, she wanted to listen to Ashe moaning her name and begging her not to stop. But they couldn't and that drove her crazy. Clinging to her last thread of sanity, she brought her hand between their bodies and with her fingers found the hot and wet folds of the archer, plunging her fingers deep into her being. Ashe shuddered violently and Katarina covered her lips with hers, consuming that last moan plagued with lust that took them both to the abyss of pleasure they longed for.

* * *

"Well, it was about time!" said Vi with a funny expression as Caitlyn told her what she had heard.

The sheriff looked more red than she had before. She hadn't meant to tell her partner what had happened but she knew her too well not to notice that something was bothering her.

"Anyway, I don't think it's the right time to do those... things"

"You take the opportunities as they present" Vi answered, averting her gaze. "It's not like they had too many chances when we're in the Institute of War"

"The issue is when you  **don't**  take those opportunities, no matter if they are presented right in front of your nose"

"What do you mean?" asked Vi, puzzled.

"Nothing, Vi, forget it. Let's go back to the camp to see if they're... ehem... done"

* * *

They ate breakfast in silence. Each of them fighting with a different mountain of concerns. Ruminating their thoughts they cleared the camp and resumed their way in the direction of Rokrund.

The morning seemed still despite the fact that they were still moving. The air was thick around them and kept them in an expectant state. Any movement put them on immediate alert, the feeling that something would happen after the first hours of the day.

Near noon, with the sun perched high above their heads, the sounds of a nearby uproar came to where the four women were. They stopped completely, trying to distinguish the direction from which the screams came.

Ashe pointed to one point to her right and the other three followed.

The voices came from a clearing where a small caravan had set up camp. Ashe and Katarina climbed nearby trees to monitor the area from above while Vi and Caitlyn used the area's bushes as cover. From there they watched in horror as the scene unfolded.

A group of three men struggled to get a group of children into a large cage. Caitlyn recognized one of them as a member of the gang of thieves they were chasing, remembered seeing him on their excursion to Zaun, he was one of those who raised bets on Katarina's fight.

The huge man was holding two children who were trying to get away with all their might, his huge hands were closing on emaciated little arms.

As he dragged them back to the cage, he kicked the little body of a girl who had been lying on the ground after what seemed to have been a riot.

Ashe's hands closed tightly over her bow and Katarina prepared to jump over those men when they saw Caitlyn's signal to stop.

The intercom in his ears made a sound and they heard the sheriff's voice.

"If we intervene now we will blow our cover, I promise we will catch all these bastards and we will make them pay for each one of their crimes"

In the distance they heard one of the men, a chubby, short guy shouting at the children in the cage.

"You will do your job until we say it is enough! And if you try to escape again, you will follow the same fate of that brat!"

The children looked at the girl who was still lying on the floor, not moving.

The wheels of the cart that carried the cage shook and they started on their route again. Having silenced the children's riot, the thieves resolved to continue on their way.

"What will we do with that one, boss?"

"Leave it there, it's no use to us," said a third man with a thick hair and dark beard.

The cart, followed by two horses, left the clearing and was lost in the forest.

The four women, crouching in their hiding places, waited impatiently until the bandits were far enough away and jumped into the clearing in the direction of the small body that still lay motionless.

Katarina was the first one to arrive at her side and took the girl in her arms.

The little girl was not older than six years old. Her extremely thin body and her tangled and opaque black hair spoke of a long time of neglect and inattention.

"She's alive" said the redhead in a whisper "but very beaten"

Vi curse under her breath and began rummaging through her bag.

"Believe me, I'm as eager to kill those bastards as you," said Caitlyn, her eyes full of tears. "And we'll all have the chance to do it."

None responded. They knew that Caitlyn had done the right thing for the mission and that the children would be relatively safe since they were somehow useful to the thieves; but they couldn't help but feel a weight on their hearts.

Vi pulled from her bag a heavy blanket with which she covered the little girl who was still in Katarina's arms.

Ashe, who was kneeling next to the assassin, ran her hand over the little girl's face and then, determined, began to deliver orders.

"Vi, go back to the stream we passed a few moments ago and collect enough water to clean up her wounds. Caitlyn, we need something to feed her. Kat..."

"I'm taking care of her" said the noxian, with total seriousness.

"I will light a small fire" sais Ashe.

The three women moved immediately, without a uttering a singlr word.

Katarina approached one of the trees and under its leafy top sat down, accommodating the girl in her arms. The little girl made an almost inaudible sound and got close the body warmth of the woman who was holding her. The assassin studied the girl's face, her features seemed decidedly Noxian, but she didn't care. She would meet those men again, and they would regret having been born.

The three women soon reappeared in the clearing and Ashe set to work. She took the little girl in her arms and with a wet cloth began to clean her wounds. Katarina had sat down next to them, not wanting to get too far away from the girl. Caitlyn and Vi took care of the lunch and quickly had a nutritious stew ready.

When Ashe was finishing cleaning the scrapes on the knees of the little girl who was half-sitting on her lap, she felt a slight movement of the little hands that had clung unconsciously to her cloak.

Carefully she withdrew a little to see her face. The girl looked at her with eyes clouded with unshed tears.

"Don't worry, little one, you don't have to be afraid anymore"

The girl seemed unable to believe the woman's words but Ashe gently caressed her face as if to assure her that she was safe and she nodded.

"What's your name?" Katarina asked, in a voice that nobody had heard before, full of tenderness.

"Bria," she said timidly, with huge red-brown eyes that still showed a little of fear and revealed her Noxian origin.

"I am Katarina Du Couteau, have you heard of me?"

"Yes"

"Then you know I've killed a lot of people, right?" A nod, "I promise I'll kill anyone who tries to hurt you, ok?"

At this the girl showed a small smile that reassured the four women.

Ashe finished cleaning her wounds and tucked her back in Vi's blanket.

"You have to eat something" she said and the girl nodded, this time with more energy.

Ashe passed the little one to Katarina who received her without protest and put her arms around her. Bria clutched at her leather jacket and hid her face in it.

"Don't be ashamed," Ashe told her, approaching her with a bowl full of stew "I'll help you"

Bria ate with enthusiasm and then fell asleep in the arms of Katarina, who refused to leave her in the blankets that Ashe had laid beside her.

The archer smiled at the protective attitude of the woman.

Caitlyn watched the, from the other end of the clearing, her gaze full of guilt because of the decision she had made.

"You made the right decision, someone has to be the leader and that's never easy," Katarina told her, feeling the need to reassure the woman that she understood her way of acting.

Caitlyn nodded.

"Those three men are mine" she said finally with in a somber tone "I will not rest until I put a bullet between the eyes of each of them"

None of them challenged that order. They knew that the consequences of their actions weighed even more heavily on the sheriff and that she would not rest until they had achieved justice.

Between the four of them they decided that, since they were half a day away from Rokrund, they could stay in the clearing until nightfall. Thus, they would let Bria recover a little. And they would enter the Noxian town under the protection of the night, which was convenient for them not to be detected by the thieves.

It was clear that the thieves used the children to infiltrate the city-states and thus be able to steal the relics. But the artifacts had taken a back seat in their mission now. Without having even spoken about it, the four women had decided that their main objective was to save the children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had the idea of keeping this chapter between Ashe and Kat's sheets. But the story suddenly got serious and the plot took control of the writer... I hope you don't hate me (so much) ;P


End file.
